Pickerington Schools History

  • Violet Township Horse-Drawn School Bus

    The history of Pickerington Schools begins with the Ordinance of 1785. This ordinance set aside land for school purposes. At one time, Violet Township was home to 19 one to two room schools spread across the township. The bulk of these schools later combined and became Pickerington Schools.

    The first documented school in the Pickerington area was in 1812. It is believed that the log cabin may have been used for church on Sundays and for school during the week.

    In 1815, Abraham Pickering, who the City of Pickerington is named after, donated a plot of land to be used for educational purposes. The Pickerington School House was built on this land. In 1883, a new two-story, two-room school was built to replace the original building.

    Census data shows that in 1895 there were 106 students in Pickerington. Today, the original school site is home to the Pickerington and Violet Township Historical Society at 15 East Columbus Street.

    The Violet Township Board of Education was created in 1905 as the first step in the unification of the area's schools. After two years of hard work, a charter from the state was in hand, and the process for financing a building program was in place. Construction of the new Violet Township High School (VTHS) began in February of 1907. The building would have six rooms plus a basement at a cost of $15,000. The VTHS class of 1909 was the first to graduate from this new school with a graduating class of four.

    In 1939, Violet Township Schools became Pickerington Schools and VTHS became Pickerington High School a year later. Driven by a dynamic and caring staff, Pickerington Schools has grown from a shared one-room school in a log cabin to 14 modern facilities, educating nearly 12,000 students.